Trapped Without Sight
by Wiccan Blade
Summary: When a blind girl falls through a portal into the pharaoh's palace, will she be able to survive in a new place? Tell me if I should continue. No Flames Please. Complete!
1. Default Chapter

Trapped Without Sight

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh

She was new to the town and she was barley getting used to it when she heard harsh voices surround her as she was on her way home and her walking stick was ripped from her hand. 

            "Who's there?" she asked shakily.

            "Your new best friends." She heard a man say in a mocking tone.

She got scared and started backing up when she fell into a hole of some kind and landed hard on her side. She had no clue where she was and she mumbled,

            "Where am I?" as she started to get up.

Suddenly, she was grabbed harshly by her upper arm and thrown in front of the pharaoh. She raised her eyes long enough for the pharaoh to see them before she was kicked sharply in the ribs. She fell to the ground in a heap.

            "Keep your eyes to the floor while in the pharaoh's presence!" one of the guards snapped.

The pharaoh thinks for a bit before saying,

            "Take her to the dungeon until I figure out what to do with her!"

'Her eyes were clouded over and I don't think she even knew she was in a throne room.' The pharaoh thought after his guards had left. 

The guards opened a cell door and threw her in non too gently before slamming the door and locking it. The girl sensed someone else in the room and backed into a corner before scooting down on the wall. She could smell his cologne so she knew it was a man; what she didn't know though, was that the man was smirking at her. He decided to experiment and leaned over and touched her arm lightly only to see her jump and try going further into the corner.

            "You really ought to trust more people." The man said with a rough voice.

Suddenly she heard,

            "You're the last person she should trust Bakura."

Bakura looked angrily at the door to see that the pharaoh had made his way to the dungeon. The girl didn't bother to lift her gaze much to the pharaoh's disappointment. The pharaoh had the guards open the cell and brought the girl out leading her by the hand to his chamber. She found a carpet to sit on and she kept her eyes lowered to the ground because she didn't want another sharp blow to the ribs. When the pharaoh lifted her chin she flinched away and started to tremble.

            "What's your name?" he asked.

            "S-Skyla." She stuttered.

            "I see, well Skyla, you can call me Yami; and I won't hurt you." He said gently.

Skyla thought sarcastically,

            'Gee, you won't hurt me, yet you let a guard kick me sharply in the ribs.' 

She heard the door slam and she started to get worried; here she was, in a place she wasn't used to, without her walking stick or a guide dog. When she heard footsteps drawing closer to her, she started to scoot backwards until she hit the wall and couldn't go any further. Before she knew it, she was slapped hard and forcefully dragged out of the room by someone. She was thrown into a different chamber all together and at a loss as to where she was and who she was with. She heard a door slam and shortly after, she heard it being blown down by some force. She was terrified, and frantically looking around for a weapon to defend herself with.

"Seto, why the hell did you drag Skyla out of my room?! I go into the washroom for two minutes and you force an innocent girl into your chamber!" She heard Yami shout in a rage.

"I was just going to kill her after smacking her around a bit." Seto answered calmly.

"You what?!" Yami shouted stunned. "I summon the Dark Magician!" He continued.

"Oh, so you want to play that way huh?" Seto asked coolly. "I call on the Blue Eyes White Dragon!" He shouted." 

"What?!" Yami was not happy, considering how he knew that the Blue Eyes was stronger than his Dark Magician.

Suddenly, Yami felt a very strong aura and looked over to Skyla to see her aura glowing bright white around her. Before Seto could do anything, Yami told his Dark Magician to attack and at the same time; Skyla's energy hit its peak and launched itself at the Blue eyes destroying it.

            "Why you!" Seto cried angrily as he headed over to severely beat the unconscious Skyla.

Seto never got the chance to touch her since Yami ordered his Dark Magician to attack. Seto was knocked unconscious and Yami went over to Pick up Skyla and carry her back to his chamber. Skyla awoke the next day to find that she was in a bed. She felt for the edge of the bed and nearly fell off when she found it before she felt a grasp on her arm that gently pulled her back towards the center of the bed.

"Skyla, how did you call on that immense energy yesterday?" She heard Yami ask her.

"To tell you the truth, I-I don't know. I felt the energy welling up inside me as I got scared, and before I knew what happened it flew at that dragon and I collapsed, feeling really weak." She answered.

"I now know that you have an immense power within you. Problem is you need to learn how to control it." Yami explained.

"I don't know the first thing about my power or how to control it. I didn't even know I had powers to begin with" Skyla admitted.

"Don't worry, I'll teach you; and since you can't see, I'll help you use your other senses to detect where to aim in order to hit the target, and to listen for the enemy to dodge an attack." Yami said to her.

Skyla screamed when she felt a hand on her shoulder that she knew was not Yami's.

"Looks like the Dark Magician wants to see if you're okay." Yami chuckled.

"I won't be if he gives me a heart attack!" Skyla said angrily. 

Yami just laughed as the Dark Magician started to pout before returning to his card.


	2. Training Begins

Chapter 2: Training Begins

Yami decided to start Skyla's training in the Shadow Realm.

"I warn you, this realm is not easy for most humans to handle; so I want you to tell me if you start feeling dizzy or weak." He explained

"Why start my training here if most humans can't handle it? Are you saying I'm not normal?" Skyla questioned.

"Most humans can't fire white light off their bodies, so in a way, you aren't normal." Yami answered.

"Gee, thanks." Skyla mumbled sarcastically.

Yami just smirked and called upon his Celtic Guardian.

"What the hell?!" Skyla was stunned as she sensed someone right in front of her. "Are you going to train me, or are you trying to kill me?!" She asked panicked.

"The Celtic Guardian is just here in case something happens." Yami stated calmly.

"I'm gonna die." Skyla said flatly with fear in her voice.

Yami just chuckled and started explaining how to block attacks and attack an unseen enemy; he then went into sparring with Skyla and attacking to see how much she's learned and how fast she is when it comes to dodging an attack. Skyla was doing well, until she collapsed to one knee from exhaustion. Suddenly, a blast that wasn't fired from Yami or any of his monsters skimmed her shoulder and drew blood. She let out a startled cry before dizziness got the better of her and she fell into unconsciousness. 

"Skyla!!" Yami cried, looking around to find the source of where the blast had come from.

When he saw no one, he ordered his Celtic Guardian to pick her up and follow him out of the Shadow Realm and into his chambers. He laid Skyla on the bed and ordered a healer to heal her shoulder. Yami started to worry when Skyla had been out for two days. Tristan and Joey, two of his most trusted guards, were told to keep an eye on her and to protect her. After Yami had left Joey asked,

            "So, this is the special girl that Yami has taken a fondness to, she sure is pretty."

"Just don't go hitting on her. The pharaoh wouldn't be too happy if you fell in love with his girl." Tristan stated, teasing Joey.

"What makes you think she's his girl?" Joey asked.

"Have you seen the way he acts around her, it's like his heart of ice was melted and love was able to enter again. Besides, he's got us protecting her, what does that tell you?" Tristan explained.

"I hate it when you're right." Joey said angrily.

Tristan just laughed. A moan brought their attention to Skyla who was just beginning to regain consciousness.

"Hey, she's awake." Tristan said happily. "I'll go get his highness." He finished, walking out the door.

Skyla had a feeling she knew exactly where she was, but she started to get worried when she heard unfamiliar voices.

            "Where am I?" she asked weakly.

            "You're in the pharaoh's chambers." Came a reply.

She tried to sit up in a panic and move away but all that earned her was a major headache. 

            "You shouldn't move, you're still very weak." The voice said gently.

            "Who are you?!" Skyla asked partly in anger and partly in fear.

            "I'm a guard to the pharaoh, my name is Joey." He replied.

At that point Tristan walked in with the Pharaoh. Well actually, Tristan walked while Yami pretty much ran into the room. 

            "Skyla, how are you feeling?" Yami asked.

Hearing Yami's voice, Skyla calmed down and answered,

            "I'm fine thanks."

"We should get you into some different clothes, I'll have Mai come in and give you a change of clothes." Yami stated before he left the room to get Mai.

Mai entered to room to see Skyla sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Hello Skyla, my name is Mai and I got you a new set of clothes to wear." Mai stated as she walked over to the bed.

"You know that I'm blind, right?" Skyla asked.

"Yes, the Pharaoh has told me; I'll help you into your new clothes if you want." Mai answered. 

"Thanks." 

After Mai had Skyla dressed, she went to get Yami so that he could see how she looked. Yami walked back into his chamber to find Skyla in a white dress with blue trim and had a gold collar around her neck with sapphires, diamonds, and rubies embedded into it. She also had arm and wrist bands outlined in silver with diamonds and rubies embedded into them. Yami's mouth dropped open at the sight of her.

"Yami? Are you alright?" Skyla asked when she heard nothing but silence.

"I'm fine Skyla; you look very elegant in that attire." He stated.

            "Thank you your highness." Skyla said blushing.

            "What's with the formalities all of a sudden, I said that you could call me Yami."

"Well, you said I look elegant, I was just thanking you in a formal manner. I won't do it again Yami." Skyla answered.

Yami just smiled and walked over to her. He took her by the hand and led her into the ball room. When she felt Yami pull her close and wrap an arm around her waist she blushed and asked,

            "Yami, where are we, and what are you doing?"

            "You'll see." Came the response. 

Yami started moving around the floor and Skyla caught on quickly to the fact that he was dancing with her. When Skyla felt someone grab her and forcefully pull her away she got worried.

"Ishtar?! What the hell are you doing?!" Yami asked angrily.

"There's a certain prisoner that you're holding in your dungeons who would like to see her." He replied coolly.

"You won't even make it to the dungeon if I have anything to say about it!" Yami shouted.

"Ah, but if you try and stop me she won't live long enough to see tomorrow." Ishtar said taking out his millennium rod and unsheathing the dagger that it held, then holding it to her throat. 

Ishtar then left the ball room with Skyla and Yami was left to think of a way to get Ishtar before he got to the dungeon. 

            "Hey Bakura, I have a special delivery for you!" Ishtar called out.

"So, you did what I asked, now open this cell and throw her in; if I'm going to be a prisoner here, I might as well have some fun." Bakura stated with an evil grin.

"I'll leave you to your fun then." Ishtar said before he left.

Skyla sensed Bakura getting closer and decided to put Yami's training to the test. Right when Bakura pinned her wrists to the wall, she pushed her energy to its peak and threw him hard against the wall with it. Bakura had the wind knocked out of him and fell unconscious. At the same time, Yami got to Bakura's cell to see Skyla and Bakura both unconscious. Yami unlocked the cell and took Skyla back to his chambers. Just as Yami placed her on the bed a guard came in saying,

"Your highness, the new slaves are here."

"Thank you Otogi, I'll be out to see them as soon as Skyla regains consciousness." Yami said sending the guard away. 

Not long after the guard left Skyla awoke and explained what happened in the dungeon to Yami. 

"I'm glad my training is paying off. I have to go look at some new slaves so I'll be back later." Yami said to her.

            "Yami wait, can I come?" Skyla asked sitting up slowly.

            "You still look very weak from using all that power." Yami stated.

            "I'll be fine; I just might need help getting to the throne room." Skyla said.

Yami agreed hesitantly and had Joey support her as they went to the throne room. When Yami got there, there were six slaves three of which looked very young. The three youngest slaves caught Yami's attention, especially the one that looked almost identical to him except for the eyes and the height difference. The other two that looked like Bakura and Ishtar caught his attention as well.

"Guards, I want you to take the albino and the blonde to the dungeon; and I want the one that looks like me taken to my chambers." Yami ordered.

"Your highness, I don't think you should send the other two to the dungeon; I sense immense power like mine radiating off of them." Skyla whispered into Yami's ear.

"You're sure of this?" he asked her.

"Yes, the same power is radiating off of all three of them." Skyla replied.

"Guards, change of plans, bring all three of them to my chambers after they are cleaned." Yami ordered before leaving the throne room with Skyla and Joey, who was still supporting her.

Yami walked into his room and Joey put Skyla on the bed before leaving and taking his post outside of Yami's door. After about a half hour, all three boys cautiously entered the pharaoh's chamber. 

"I see you've finally arrived." Yami said with a bit of impatients in his voice. 

"Yami, you should go easy on them, they're probably terrified of you since you're the pharaoh. People have a tendency to spread rumors about pharaohs being cruel." Skyla said gently.

"Skyla, I think you've made me go soft." Yami said in a fake upset tone.

"Then I'm doing my job." Skyla answered proud of herself.

Yami gave her a fake glare and she started to giggle. The three slaves were confused at the scene before them. Skyla walked over to the three slaves and kneeled down in front of them much to Yami's surprise considering how he knew she was blind. 

"Yami, just because I can't see doesn't mean I'm helpless." Skyla said when she heard an awkward silence from Yami. 

"I didn't say anything." Yami said defensively.

"Please, hearing you be silent is the first indication of you being surprised." Skyla said to him.

One of the slaves gently tapped her on the shoulder and looked to the ground as she looked towards him.

            "Yes?" Skyla asked.

            "Um, are you and the pharaoh married?" the one that looked like the pharaoh asked.

Yami blushed deep crimson at this. Skyla giggled and said,

            "No, Yami and I are just good friends. Anyway, you should probably tell us your names." 

The one that looked like Yami introduced himself and his friends.

            "I'm Yugi, the albino over there is Ryou, and the blonde over there is Malik."

Yami saw that Ryou looked angrily at Yugi for calling him an albino and chuckled. When Yugi looked up at him questioningly, Yami said,

            "Bakura does the same thing when I call him an albino."

            "Bakura?" Ryou questioned.

            "Bakura is a tomb robber and he's down in the dungeon paying for his crimes." Yami answered.

            "Yami, you should imprison Ishtar after what he did." Skyla said.

            "I would, if I could find him." Yami said.

            "What's he look like?" Ryou asked.

            "He looks like Malik." Skyla answered for Yami.

Malik paled and said,

            "So that's why he wanted to throw Ryou and me in the dungeon."

            "For all I know you could've been their brothers." Yami stated angrily.

"Yami calm down. If it wasn't for me, you and Ryou would probably be sharing a cell with Bakura right now." Skyla chimed in.

"I'm going to bed." Yami stated simply.

"In the middle of the afternoon?" Skyla asked incredulously.

"Yes, in the middle of the afternoon; and I suggest you all do the same." Yami answered angrily.

"Yeah, you could probably use the nap Mr. Crabby Pants." Skyla said sarcastically, earning a glare from Yami and giggles from the three slaves.

Then, all of them laid down for a nap and slept peacefully.


	3. The Slave's Duties

Chapter 3: The Slaves' Duties

When they woke up the next day, Yami told the slaves that they'd be helping to protect Skyla; in other words, they would be more like guards rather than slaves.

            "Yami, I'm not helpless!!" Skyla protested.

            "I know, but it doesn't hurt to take extra precautions." Yami stated calmly.

Ryou, Yugi, and Malik looked at each other and then back to Skyla and Yami.

            "Your highness, what exactly will our duties be?" Ryou asked.

"That is another thing; I want you all to start addressing me as Yami. Ryou, the servant that usually feeds Bakura is ill so you'll have to bring him his meal."

"Why me?! I thought I wouldn't be seeing him after you decided against throwing us in the dungeon!" Ryou asked surprised.

"Basically, I want to know what Bakura's reaction will be in seeing you; you both look very much alike. Ryou, can you cook?"

"Yes why?"

"I want you to make his meal, not just serve him something from the other cooks. Then you can work in the kitchen and make my meals as well. Take this card; it may come in handy if there's trouble."

"D. Human?"

"Yes, now you should head to the kitchen to make his meal; it's almost his breakfast time."

After Ryou left, Yami turned to give Malik his instructions when an arrow was fired at him and skimmed his shoulder, drawing blood. Yami looked to where the arrow was fired from but saw no one.

            "Yami! You're bleeding!" Yugi said while rushing to the pharaoh's side to look at it.

            "Don't worry Yugi, it's just a scratch." Yami said, like it was no big deal.

            "Yami, the cut is rather deep." Yugi said before touching it.

When Yugi put his hand to the wound, Yami saw it close on its own and looked at Yugi with a stunned expression. Yugi started to back away, feeling that Yami was angry with him, when Yami stopped him.

            "Yugi, you will be working as the healer from now on." He said smiling.

Yugi just nodded and waited to hear where Malik would be working. Yami was still looking at Yugi when he said,

            "Now, who should I have protect you in case something should happen?"

Yugi looked at Yami confused when Neo the Magic Swordsman came out of a portal, kneeled, and said,

            "My lord, I would be happy to have the duty to protect this young one."

            "Then please stand Neo, and show him to the healer's quarters." Yami agreed.

Neo leaned down and grabbed Yugi's hand, leading him out of the pharaoh's chambers and into the healer's quarters. Yami watched as they left and looked back at Malik. Noticing Yami looked tired, Malik moved a chair for Yami to sit in, which bumped the back of the pharaoh's knees causing him to fall into it. Yami's eyes widened considering how Malik was still in front of him and the chair came up from behind the pharaoh. 

"Malik, you are appointed to prison guard since I see you are a telekinetic."  Yami stated happily.

            "I'll have Joey and Tristan get you some armor and show you to the dungeons." He finished.

Malik looked confused at first, and then smiled, accepting the job. (Not that he really had the choice to protest).

"I'll have The Celtic Guardian assist you should something happen that telekinesis cannot overcome." Yami said while calling out Celtic.

In the kitchen, Ryou had just finished making Bakura's meal and was heading down to the dungeon to serve it when he ran into Malik.

            "Malik, what are you doing here?" Ryou asked.

"I was given the job as dungeon guard. The pharaoh and I both found out a few minutes ago that I'm a telekinetic." Malik answered happily.

"So you found out a special ability of yours, what about Yugi?" Ryou asked.

"He was discovered to have the power to heal." Malik answered and then noticed Ryou looking at Celtic, who was standing beside him.

"Celtic is my protector, so to speak." Malik said before Ryou had the chance to question him on it.

Ryou smiled and continued to Bakura's cell. 

'I wish I knew if I had a special ability.' Ryou thought as he walked down the last of the stairs.

Although he had never seen the prisoner before, he somehow knew exactly which cell to go to. Hearing someone outside of his cell, Bakura looked up and nearly had a heart attack at the sight of a boy who looked almost exactly like him. Ryou's reaction was similar but he pushed it aside as he unlocked the cell and set the food down in front of Bakura. Before he could leave, Bakura grabbed harshly onto his wrist and asked roughly,

"What's your name?!"

"R-R-Ryou." Ryou answered nervously while trying to free his wrist.

Bakura kept a firm grip though, and Ryou was beginning to wish he had some help when the card Yami gave him started to glow. Ryou took the card out of the folds of his clothes just in time for the man to come out and appear beside him. He hit Bakura's hand causing him to let go of Ryou. Then he aided Ryou in stepping out of the cell and locking it up. 

            "Wh-Who are you?" Ryou stuttered.

"I am D. Human, the monster that Yami has sent to protect you." Came the reply. "It seems you have a gift much like the pharaoh's; you can summon monsters out of their cards." He continued.

The info was a little too much for Ryou to handle and he ended up fainting. D. Human picked him up and brought him back to the pharaoh's chamber. He walked in the door carrying Ryou and stated,

"My lord, I don't think Ryou is as accepting of his gift as some others. I came out of my card on his wishes and explained to him how I was able to help him; then he fainted."

Yami chuckled and told him to put Ryou on the makeshift bed on the floor; he then dismissed D. Human and told him he could return to his card. 

            "Yami, what did he mean, come out of his card?" Skyla asked from her spot on the bed.

"Remember when I called out the Dark Magician? Well, he is a duel monster and he lives inside a card in which I can summon him when I need his help." Yami explained. "My guards also have cards of their own. Joe has his Flame Swordsman and Red Eyes Black Dragon; and Tristan has the Cyber Commander. Unfortunately, many of the cards don't have a master to protect, so they are hardly ever used, except in battle." He finished.

As Skyla tried to absorb all of this information, she still looked a bit confused.

"I'll give you an example." Yami stated. "Harpie's Brother come out and take a look at your new master!" he ordered.

"What do you mean 'new master?!'" Skyla asked surprised.

"Skyla, you can't see and you're senses aren't as sharp as they should be for you to be able to protect yourself." Yami explained while placing the blank card in her hand. "He's got red wings and is very dark skinned with black hair and a red mask over his eyes." He described her monster's features to her.

"When Seto called out his Blue Eyes, was that his protector?" Skyla asked.

"Unfortunately, yes, Seto has three of the Blue Eyes at his command, and each one has more attack strength than Tristan's, Joey's, and my monsters combined." Yami answered sadly.

            "How do I ask for the monster's help?" Skyla asked.

            "Just call out to him either verbally or mentally and he will be by your side." Yami answered.

            "Where is he?" Skyla asked.

A hand on her shoulder caused her to jump, and to realize where he was.

"I really wish you'd give me a warning before you do that!" Skyla said angrily, only to hear Yami start laughing.

            "It's not funny!"

"It is when you look at the confusion on your monster's face." Yami stated. "The Dark Magician did the same thing to her." Yami explained to him.

After that, Skyla heard the door close and realized that it was just her and Harpie's Brother in the room.

"First of all, I'm not going to call you Harpie's Brother all the time; I've gotta find a name for you." She told her monster. "How about, Ala Rojo, Rojo for short?" She asked.

"What does it mean?" He asked her.

"It means, Red Wing." She answered.

He approved and she started asking him questions and getting to know him, while he also got to know her. Skyla then heard the door open and before she could ask if it was Yami, she felt Rojo fly in front of her.

            "C'mon Skyla, you know me, you remember when you were in the dungeon."

            "Bakura?! What are you doing out of your cell?!"

            "I'm a thief; I have ways of escaping from my cell."

            "And my guards are going to put you back into the very cell that you escaped from!"

            "Yami!! What are you doing here?!"

            "Well Skyla, I got a distress signal through the Shadow Realm from Harpie's Brother here."

            'Damn, forgot about the link between the pharaoh and his monsters.'

            "Actually, I gave him a name; he is now known as Ala Rojo, Rojo for short."

"Guards, take Bakura back to his cell, and make sure this time that he doesn't have his lock picking kit with him."

             "Yes your highness."

So, Bakura was dragged out of the pharaoh's chambers and back into his cell while Yami sat down with Skyla and found out what she was doing while he was away.

            "So, you and Rojo were telling each other about your lives?"

            "Yep, and Rojo's life sounds very interesting."

At that comment, Yami looked up at Rojo to see a faint blush appear on his cheeks and chuckled to himself.

            "What about his life is so interesting?" Yami asked.

"Well, he has been in many battles, but he never really had a master to protect. You were right about some monsters not having a master, he seemed saddened by it; but he was really happy to be brought out to protect someone, and to actually feel like he has a purpose besides fighting." Skyla explained.

"Sounds like I chose a good monster to be your guardian." Yami said. "You should go to sleep, it's getting late." He finished.

"What about Yugi and Malik?" Skyla asked.

"I suppose I should have them return shouldn't I?" Yami stated.

"That might be a good idea." Skyla answered sarcastically.

Yami gave her a fake glare before telling her to go to sleep. After Yami left to get Malik and Yugi, Skyla asked if Rojo wanted to return to his card or if he wanted to stay out. He chose to stay out to keep an eye on her. She agreed and then lay down to go to sleep. Yami returned to his room to find Skyla soundly asleep with Rojo near by. He showed Yugi and Malik each their makeshift beds and they too lied down and went to sleep. The next morning, Skyla was the first one up followed by Malik, Yugi, Ryou, and finally Yami. Rojo had returned to his card just before she woke up.

"Yami, you sleep in too long it's nearly noon." Skyla scolded.

"I guess I shouldn't have stayed up until midnight watching you sleep huh?" Yami said watching a blush arise to Skyla's cheeks and chuckling.

"Yami, what are our duties today?" Yugi asked.

"Please don't make me feed Bakura again." Ryou pleaded.

"Can I throw some people around while I'm guarding the prisoners in the dungeon?" Malik asked mischievously.

"Can I leave your chambers for once?" Skyla asked.

"Hold on a minute! I'm supposed to be the one giving orders not taking requests!" Yami exclaimed. 

Everyone quieted down and waited for him to give them their answers. Skyla was allowed to leave Yami's chamber, but only after he placed a special collar on her neck, replacing the one that was already there. The collar was gold with the eye of Horus in the center outlined in silver. Yugi was given a collar with rubies embedded in it, Malik's had diamonds embedded in it, and Ryou's had sapphires embedded in it. If either of his slaves or Skyla were touched by someone with evil intentions, he'd know who did it, and they'd be punished immediately.  Yami also put a matching arm band on the right arm of each of his slaves and Skyla.

"Are you done decorating us now?" Skyla asked sarcastically.

"Alright, alright, you can go." Yami said with a sigh.

Yami told the three slaves that their duties were the same as the day before. Ryou was not happy with that idea.

'Bakura's going to be really grumpy; he didn't get breakfast this morning.' Ryou thought as he slowly made his way to the dungeon with Bakura's lunch in hand.


	4. Trouble for Skyla and the Three Slaves

Chapter4: Trouble for Skyla and the Three Slaves

Ryou reached Bakura's cell and as expected, Bakura wasn't happy.

            "Where the hell have you been?!" he yelled, lunging at the bars of his cell.

Ryou wasn't happy with Bakura's tone and he snapped at him,

            "Keep it up and breakfast won't be the only meal you don't receive!"

Bakura clamped up and waited patiently for Ryou to open his cell and set the food down before rushing over and grabbing Ryou's throat, pinning him to the wall. Ryou's collar glowed an angry blue and Bakura was thrown hard into the wall on the other side of the cell. Ryou fell to the floor and quickly got up running out of the cell, closing and locking the door all before Bakura could get to his feet. Ryou ran out of the dungeon as fast as he could and returned to Yami's chamber until he was to serve Bakura dinner. 

"So, Bakura wasn't happy?" Yami asked calmly after Ryou ran in, shut the door and stood there panting.

"No, thank Ra the collar worked." Ryou panted out.

Yami frowned; Bakura was a lot more violent when he missed a meal. It was then that D. Human came out of his card and stood next to Ryou.

            "Master, are you okay?" he asked.

            "Do I look like I'm okay?!" Ryou snapped.

            "You're lucky you had the collar; but I would've helped you if you had called."

            "Fear tends to banish all reasonable thought." Ryou said calmly. "I'm sorry I snapped at you."

            "It's alright master, I'm just glad you're okay."

            "You may return to your card now D. Human." Ryou said.

With that, D. Human disappeared in a flash of light. Yami then asked Ryou to go make him something to eat so that he would have something to do besides sit in Yami's chamber all day. Ryou returned later with a three course meal and awaited his next meeting with Bakura.

"Ryou, you should eat something, you didn't eat anything for breakfast. Besides, there's more than enough here for you and me." Yami said.

Ryou took a little of everything and ate what he could. Meanwhile, Yugi was in his healing quarters when Joe stumbled in, and he wasn't in very good condition.

"What happened?!" Yugi asked while looking at his severely cut up arms and a puncture wound to his shoulder.

"The high priest was not happy when I won against his guards. They were trying to get to Skyla, I told her to run while I held them off." Joe groaned.

"Hold still!" Yugi ordered, placing his hands over Joe's wounds watching as they started to heal.

"Thanks" Joe said before leaving to get back to his duties.

After Joe left, Yugi was able to get one thought out before collapsing.

            'Neo'

Neo appeared by his side just in time to catch him.

            "Master! What happened?!" he asked.

            "Used too much energy." Yugi whispered out.

Neo immediately picked up Yugi and brought him to Yami's chamber. 

            "My lord, Yugi used too much energy for something, but for what, I don't know." Neo explained.

"That would be my fault." Came Joey's voice from the door. "I was helping Skyla by fighting off some of Seto's guards after I told her to run. She got away, and I beat Seto's guards but I was severely injured so I went to the healer's quarters where Yugi healed me." Joe explained.

"Thank you Joey for that explanation, but now you have to get back to your duties." Yami stated sending Joe away.

Yami told Neo to place Yugi on one of the makeshift beds and dismissed him. Ryou walked over and sat down next to Yugi, who was now sleeping. Malik was in the dungeons watching his corner of prisoners when he heard someone talking to Bakura; he leaned in to hear the conversation better.

            "So, you plan on grabbing Skyla again for me?" Bakura asked the figure.

            "Yes, it should work; I plan on grabbing her while she sleeps." The man answered.

            "You do know you'll have to enter the pharaoh's chambers for that right?" Bakura asked.

            "Of course, I grabbed her from the pharaoh in the ball room, remember?" The figure replied.

            "Ishtar, I want you to hang around a bit longer this time." Bakura told him.

At that point, Malik decided to walk down the corridor as if he was just making his usual rounds. Seeing Ishtar standing by Bakura's cell, he nearly gasped at the resemblance. But he continued walking towards them and when he got close enough he shouted,

            "Hey! There are no visiting hours down here!"

Ishtar turned towards him and nearly choked at the guard standing a good distance away from him. Ishtar then tried to run at him, but found himself floating in the air. He looked at the kid and realized it was him that was making him float. He grabbed his rod and hurled it at Malik's head hitting him at just the right angle to knock him unconscious; but one of the blades on the side cut Malik just above his left eyebrow. Ishtar fell to the ground landing hard on his butt before getting up and retrieving his rod getting ready to stab the boy through the heart. 

Yami had gotten a mental picture of what was happening right before Malik was knocked unconscious and immediately headed to the dungeon with his guards following him. He got to the dungeon just in time to stop Ishtar, and order his guards to take the rod from him, before having them throw him into the cell next to Bakura's. Yami called out Celtic to carry Malik back to his chambers.

'The only one that hasn't ended up in my chambers is Skyla; I hope she's okay.' Yami thought.

Unfortunately, Skyla wasn't okay; she was being chased by Seto down the many corridors of the palace. Seto had realized that she was a good runner for a blind person but she soon lost her footing and fell to the ground. She heard Seto approaching her and she called out mentally,

            'Rojo, I need your help!'

Rojo immediately appeared in front of her and saw Seto approaching his master; he went on the defensive and got in a position to defend her. Yami sensed it when Rojo came out of the shadow realm and immediately headed out of his chambers and down to where Skyla was. After many twists and turns he finally found her and commanded Seto to stop. Seto looked angrily at the pharaoh and continued to walk towards Skyla.

"Believe it or not pharaoh, this slave has made you go soft." Seto commented as he got closer to her.

Yami's last string of control finally snapped and he opened up the shadow realm.

"Oh come now Yami, you don't seriously believe that you can stop me with all your pathetic monsters do you?" Seto said before calling on his three blue eyes.

"Master, you called?" Exodia asked.

"Yes I did." Yami answered, smirking at Seto who called all of his blue eyes back and left the shadow realm angrily.

'I will get that girl eventually.' Seto thought.

Yami closed the shadow realm and dismissed Exodia before he turned around and helped Skyla up and brought her back to his chamber where the other slaves were; Skyla thanked Rojo for protecting her and gave him permission to leave. With a nod, he disappeared back into the shadow realm. 

"Skyla?" she heard Yugi say her name.

"Yugi, what are you doing here, I thought you'd be in the healer's quarters." Skyla questioned.

"I kinda fainted after healing one of the guards." Yugi answered.

"Ugh, what happened?" Malik asked as he regained consciousness.

"You met Ishtar and he threw his millennium rod at you, knocking you out." Yami explained. "Not to mention, he cut you above your eyebrow; he was going to stab you through the heart, you're lucky I got a mental image of what was happening and I could get down there in time to imprison him and rescue you." Yami finished.

"Okaaay, I think I'll get back to my duties now." Malik said while getting up, only to fall back down.

"Malik, I think you should rest some more." Yami said to him.

"No! I have to guard the prisoners!" Malik shouted, being stubborn.

"Malik, you should listen to Yami, he's only trying to keep you healthy." Ryou suggested.

"Ryou, I know we're friends and all, but shut up." Malik said, refusing to take his advice.

"Malik, come here." Skyla said.

"What, what did you want to talk to me about?" Malik asked.

Skyla put her hand over his eyes and simply said,

            "Sleep." And Malik collapsed to the ground in slumber.

            "Hey look, I can force people into slumber; Yami come here, let me try it on you."

"Absolutely not! I have duties to attend to and my counsel will not be happy if I don't show up." Yami said.

Skyla started to pout and Yami put a lot of effort into not giving in to her. 

            "I said no and I mean no." Yami said before leaving his chamber. 

            "He never sticks around long enough." Skyla said before walking over to the bed and sitting down.

Her stomach started growling and she mumbled, "Damn vision problem." Then she heard the door open and close again.

"Who's there?" She asked.

"Uh, no one's there Skyla, Ryou left." Yugi answered.

"Oh, where'd he go?" Skyla asked.

"I don't know." Yugi answered.

Just as their conversation ended Ryou entered the room again and handed Skyla a dish with a two course meal.

            "Oh, thanks Ryou." Skyla said.

            "No problem." Ryou said nonchalantly.

            "You know Ryou; I wish sometimes, that I could see." Skyla said.

"That would definitely help you out some, considering that you'd be able to see your enemies." Ryou stated.

"Well, since I won't be getting my vision back anytime soon, I guess I'll just have to deal with the disability. I've lived with it since I was born; I can handle living with it for the rest of my life." Skyla explained sadly.

"That may not necessarily be true; I might be able to get one of my monsters to heal your eyes." Yami said as he closed the door.

"Yami, I don't want to burden you with my problems." Skyla said.

"It's not a burden; I don't mind." Yami said.

"You may not mind, but what about the monster that has to do the task?" Skyla asked.

"I don't know, let me call out the Mystical Elf and we'll find out." Yami said, pulling out the card.

"Pharaoh, please, I'm afraid that if I get my hopes up and it doesn't work, I'll do something stupid." Skyla said, reaching out and grabbing Yami's arm.

"Skyla, you don't usually call me pharaoh unless it's something important." Yami said. "I'll wait until you're ready then." He finished.

"Yami, I wouldn't mind trying to heal her eyes." Yugi said. "Besides, I do want to see the extent of what I can heal." He finished.

"Yugi, you don't even know if all your energy has returned from healing Joey." Yami stated.

"I'm sure it won't take that much of my power; please." Yugi persisted.

"It's up to Skyla." Yami said before looking at her.

"Well, okay, he can try, but if it doesn't work then I don't want to try again." Skyla agreed.

Yugi walked over to her and had Yami lay her down on the bed before he put his hands over her eyes and concentrated on healing them. When Yugi removed his hands from her eyes, he started to take a step back but he started falling backwards. Luckily, Yami was behind him and he was able to catch him before he hit the floor. Yami carried Yugi over to his makeshift bed on the floor and laid him on it before walking back over to his bed to check on Skyla.

"Skyla, open your eyes; how do you expect to find out if it worked if you don't open them?" Yami stated gently.

"I'm afraid to open them; what if it didn't work?" Skyla asked.

"There's only one way to find out if it worked and that is to open your eyes." Yami encouraged.

"Okay, here goes." Skyla said before opening her eyes slowly.

As soon as she opened her eyes, she'd wished she hadn't; she was met with a bright light before her vision cleared and she saw a red eyed man staring down at her. Yami noticed that she was looking up at him with eyes of bright turquoise and that her eyes were no longer fogged over. 

"Skyla?" he asked hopefully.

"Yami, is that you?" She asked and saw his face fall. "I can see fine Yami; it's just, well, finally being able to see is like a new adventure since I'm seeing the people that have always been around me for the first time." Skyla explained as she saw Yami's face light up.

"You hear that Yugi? It worked, Skyla can see." Yami said looking over at Yugi and finding that he was sound asleep. "I guess it'll be a while before Yugi will learn that he healed your eyes; you should call out Ala Rojo and tell him the good news." Yami advised before leaving his chamber.

Skyla brought out the card realizing that Yami did have a point and that Rojo deserved to know that she could see.

'Rojo, come out here please.' She requested mentally and watched as he appeared before her in a flash of light.

"What is it master? You look different." He said as he walked towards her.

"I've got my vision back." She said happily.

"Oh, I guess this means that you won't need me to protect you anymore." Rojo said as he hung his head.

"What?! I would never even think of abandoning you like that! You are special to me Rojo and I know for a fact I'll still need your help because you've seen Bakura and you know what he looks like. I may be able to see, but that doesn't mean I don't need you anymore. Without you, I wouldn't know if I was in any danger, should I actually see Bakura." Skyla explained in a panic that her monster would even think that she didn't need him anymore.

"Really master? You wouldn't do that?" Rojo asked, lifting his head to look at her.

"Of course. You didn't really think that I would let you get away from me after all I went through to practically become friends with you; did you?" Skyla asked teasingly seeing a blush appear on Rojo's cheeks. "Come here Rojo." Skyla said before he walked over and she hugged him reassuringly causing his blush to increase.

What Skyla didn't know, was that Yami was right outside his door listening to the entire conversation between her and Rojo and he smiled as he looked through the crack into his chamber to see Rojo blushing furiously. He chuckled before heading to the kitchens to have the cooks make dinner for him and his slaves.

"Come on Rojo, let's walk around the palace. Only one thing though, if we run into Bakura or Seto, put a hand on my shoulder to let me know so that I can act as though I'm still blind and catch them off guard when I strike at them." Skyla requested.

"That might not be a good idea." A white haired boy said. "Bakura's extremely dangerous; I should know, I had to serve him his meals." He finished.

"Ryou, thanks for your concern, but, I think Rojo and I will be able to handle any problems he may cause." Skyla said, seeing the look of shock on Ryou's face. "I know you're Ryou because I remember that Yami told you to serve Bakura his meals." She explained as she saw a look of understanding cross Ryou's face.

"The pale blonde over there is Malik and the one that looks almost exactly like Yami is Yugi." Ryou said, introducing the two sleeping boys.

"Thanks, now I know which one's which." Skyla said before leaving the chamber with Rojo following behind her. 

What Skyla didn't expect though was to see one of the slave masters in the palace awaiting a meeting with the pharaoh.

"Ah, I see the pharaoh has decided to send a slave instead of meeting with me about purchasing one." The man said as he walked over to her.

Rojo flew in front of her and tried to protect her but he was sent back to the shadow realm by one of the slave master's monsters. Skyla had tears in her eyes as the man grabbed her arm and started pulling her out of the palace. 

"Unhand me! I've already got a master! I said, let me go!!" Skyla screamed as he literally dragged her out of the palace.

'Rojo's returned to the shadow realm by way of another monster.' Yami thought. 'Skyla! If Seto got to her I'll kill him!' he finished before running through the corridors and into the throne room in time to hear Skyla screaming at a man.

"Jagan, unhand my slave this instant!!" Yami shouted as he came up behind him.

Jagan turned around and bowed before Yami.

"I am sorry pharaoh; I thought that you sent a slave out to me instead of coming to discus the matter of buying a slave." Jagan explained.

"That is no excuse! I have clearly marked her as mine through the collar and the arm and wrist bands that she wears!" Yami yelled.

"I'm so sorry milord I…" Jagan started.

"Enough! Guards, take him to the dungeon!" Yami shouted as the guards came and took him to the dungeon.

Skyla walked up the steps and stood next to Yami.

            "Are you okay Skyla, did he hurt you in any way?" Yami asked.

"I'm fine, he didn't hurt me. Rojo tried to protect me but he called out a monster of his own to destroy Rojo. I miss him so much; we were so close and now he's gone." Skyla said letting tears fall from her eyes.

Yami smiled and he himself called out to Rojo and had him come out behind Skyla. Skyla gasped when she felt hands on her shoulders. Rojo turned her around and smiled before wiping the tears from her eyes. Skyla hugged him tight and cried out of happiness that he was alive and well.

"When a monster is destroyed by another monster, they are sent back to the shadow realm until they are called on again." Yami explained.

"I thought for sure that I'd never see you again." Skyla said.

"You kidding, it takes more than another monster's attack to get rid of me." Rojo said teasingly before picking Skyla up and walking behind Yami back to his chambers.

Once they returned to Yami's chambers Rojo put Skyla on the bed and stood watching over her when she finally fell asleep. As for the others, they were just happy that Skyla was okay. 


	5. Enemies Join Forces

Chapter: 5 Enemies Join Forces

Seto finally realized that he'd need help to get Skyla from the pharaoh, so he decided to free Bakura and Ishtar from the dungeon and also to bring in another friend of his named Keith to help him to get her back into his possession. First, he sent Keith to grab her when she was alone and bring her to his chambers. Then he told Bakura and Ishtar to work up some other trouble to get the pharaoh distracted from protecting Skyla. Keith struck when Skyla was walking down the hall by herself to get to the throne room.

'This is so perfect, I don't have to lure her into the throne room at all if she's already there when I grab her.' Keith thought.

Skyla entered the throne room and was grabbed from behind before her captor covered her mouth to prevent her from calling for help. What he covered her mouth with though was a chemical that he found in the healer's quarters (after he knocked Yugi unconscious) that put people to sleep. Skyla struggled against him to free herself from his grasp but fell unconscious before she could do anything to escape.

"The high priest would like to see you." Keith whispered in her ear as he carried her to Seto's chambers.

Skyla came to noticing that her wrists chained to the wall and looked around to see Seto, Bakura, Ishtar, and another guy she didn't recognize. She also remembered that they didn't know she had her vision back, so she acted like she didn't know where she was.

"Where am I; who's there?!" she demanded.

"You should recognize my voice" Seto said.

"You! Why don't you get over yourself?! I know that there are more people here besides you, who did you get to be your attack dogs Seto?!" She asked sarcastically, awaiting a blow that would most likely come from her comment.

Seto raised his foot to kick her in the side when she looked at him defiantly and sent him into the wall.

            "This is impossible! You can see?!" Seto stated shocked.

            "That's right, knock up one point for bozo number one!" Skyla said sarcastically.

            "Great, that means she can see my beautiful face." Bakura said.

            "If that's what you call beautiful, I'd hate to see what you think is ugly." Skyla retorted.

            "I see she's still as feisty as ever." Ishtar commented.

"Gee what planet have you been on Blondie; I've always been feisty, and always will be!" Skyla yelled.

"You'll pay for that!" Ishtar said bringing down his millennium rod, hitting her in the gut.

Skyla slouched over in pain before looking at him angrily and throwing him into the wall. Seto was recovered by then and walked over and slapped her across the face harshly.

            "You will be silent in the presence of a royal!" he commanded.

            "The only royal I'll ever be silent for is master Yami!" She said defiantly.

            "How bout you guys leave and I'll take care of her." Bakura suggested.

"I'm sure you will, I know you like her Bakura and I don't trust you alone with her for one minute." Seto said. "She is going to serve me and that's that." Seto continued while looking into Skyla's defiant eyes.

"I'd rather die than serve you, you royal pig!!" Skyla said angrily.

"I would do the honors if Yami didn't hold you as his prize; but I want to see his face when he finds out that I was able to break you and that you won't look him in the face." Seto said, smiling cruelly.

And with that, Seto dismissed the other three men in his chambers and brought out a whip to try and break her. As he whipped her, her screams got louder and more agonizing. Back in Yami's room, Yami was pacing back and forth wondering where Skyla was and why she hadn't returned to his chamber yet. Bakura and Ishtar knew what Seto was doing was wrong but they were afraid that if they told the pharaoh, he'd just throw them into the dungeon all over again. 

Bakura and Ishtar however did want to learn more about Ryou and Malik so they made up a scheme to kidnap them and pull a learning session. They struck when Ryou and Malik were doing their daily chores. Bakura captured Ryou when he went down to the kitchens to cook for him; Ishtar captured Malik when he was patrolling the dungeons. Bakura and Ishtar found an empty chamber earlier that day and they brought their two captives there to talk with them.

"I said, let go of me!" Malik said just before he was dropped on the ground.

"What's this all about?" Ryou asked as he was set down gentler on the bed.

"We want to get to know you; you look so much like us that we decided to hold a 'getting to know you' session." Ishtar answered.

"You expect us to trust you?!" Malik asked incredulously.

"Not really, but we do want to show you that we don't intend to hurt you." Bakura answered.

"You held me up by the throat against the wall when I served your meals!" Ryou yelled.

"I was in the dungeon, what did you expect!" Bakura yelled back.

"Oh yeah, you'd be the perfect married couple." Malik said sarcastically hearing snickers from Ishtar.

"You wanted to kill me if I remember correctly!" Malik yelled at Ishtar.

"I didn't know how I was supposed to react around someone who looked exactly like me that just happened to be a telekinetic." Ishtar explained.

This exchange went on for a couple of hours before they finally started to get along. Meanwhile, Yami was going ballistic; three of his slaves had disappeared. 

"None of their collars have even been activated; the only way for that to happen would be if they were removed." Yami stated.

In Seto's room, he had finally broken Skyla to the point where she was too afraid to oppose him; not to mention, she had lost consciousness.

"Heh, finally, I broke you; tomorrow Yami will find out what happened to you in a way he will never forget." Seto said before cleaning up and going to bed.

The next day came, and Ryou and Malik went back to Yami's chamber with Ishtar and Bakura to explain that they had come to no harm and that Bakura and Ishtar actually did have hearts. They were also going to ask if Bakura and Ishtar could become guards instead of being thrown back into the dungeon. After two hours of making deals and testing loyalty Yami finally agreed to let them become guards. That's when Bakura decided to tell Yami where Skyla had disappeared to.

"My pharaoh, I know where Skyla is; Seto finally got her due to bringing a man named Keith in to catch her for him. He was planning to break her to have her serve him; he replaced her collar so that the other one couldn't protect her and she couldn't call on her monster." Bakura explained.

"How long have you known this?!" Yami asked angrily.

"Since last night, but I was afraid that if I came forward, you'd just throw me in the dungeon again." Bakura explained.

"Well, now that you have come forward, I'll go rescue her." Yami stated.

"I'm afraid it's too late for that pharaoh." Seto said while leaning on Yami's doorframe.

"What are you doing here you demon?!" Yami asked seething.

"Not much, just showing you that Skyla can be broken under the right circumstances." Seto answered nonchalantly while pulling hard on a rope that was attached to the collar that Skyla wore.

Skyla was pulled harshly to Seto and what Yami saw horrified him. Skyla had several scars from a whip coming down on her arms, legs and Yami guessed that her back was in severe condition as well. What hurt Yami most though, was the fact that Skyla wouldn't even look him in the face. Seto put his arm around her and pulled her towards him as he turned away and headed back to his chambers. Yami saw a single tear slide down Skyla's cheek as they headed down the hall. Yami was in a rage, he quietly stepped out in the hall in time to see Seto push Skyla harshly to the ground and it was at that point that he snapped and mind crushed Seto right there.

"Bakura, Ishtar, get that body out of my sight!" Yami commanded.

Yami walked over to Skyla who didn't even move to get up and put a hand on her shoulder. Skyla pulled away almost immediately and turned her eyes to the floor letting tears flow down her cheeks. Yami noticed that her eyes were also dull instead of the bright eyes he was used to. 

"Skyla, I'm not going to hurt you; you know that I would never hurt you." Yami said gently.

Skyla turned her head towards him, keeping her eyes to the floor and thought about it, realizing that he never laid a finger on her when she was in his chamber and that he really cared for her. Skyla looked at Yami for a few minutes before throwing herself into his arms and breaking down crying. Yami was shocked at first before he started to comfort her saying,

"Shhh, it's alright, he'll never hurt you again." 'Rojo, could you come out please, Skyla needs some comfort and security and I think that you can help her to feel better.' Yami requested mentally.

Rojo came out of the shadow realm in front of Yami and Skyla. In seeing Skyla's condition, he knelt down next to her and put a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him.

            "Rojo? Rojo!!" Skyla said in disbelief before being pulled into a hug by him.

"It's alright master, it's alright. Shhh, you'll never be hurt again; as long as you call out to me for help." Rojo comforted her.

When they heard no more sniffles from Skyla they looked down to find that she had fallen asleep. Yami walked into Seto's room and retrieved the collar that Skyla had when she was with him before returning to his chamber and removing Seto's collar from her neck. Yami then replaced his collar on her neck and had Yugi look over her wounds that were still open in places, especially on her back, and had him heal her. When Skyla awoke, she noticed that the scars from the whip had vanished and her back was no longer sore. She sat up and tried to stand when she started to fall over; she would've hit the ground if Bakura hadn't caught her.

"Careful there, you shouldn't try moving yet, you're still very weak." He said.

Seeing who was holding her, she pushed away from him landing on the bed.

"Skyla, don't worry, Bakura and Ishtar are Yami's new guards. If they hadn't told Yami what happened, he would've never thought that Seto got a hold of you." Ryou said from his corner in the room.

"Really?" She asked, unsure.

"Really, they mean no harm. They had to kidnap Malik and me to show it, but they mean no harm." Ryou answered.

At that point, Yami walked in with some food, Yugi following close behind. He walked over to the bed and asked,

            "Skyla, are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?" 

            "Please, that bastard high priest didn't feed me." Skyla answered.

            "You're getting your spunk back I see." Yami said smiling.

When Yami sat on the bed, Skyla leaned over and hugged him tightly. (Luckily he placed the food on a night stand). 

"Yami, I'm so sorry I'm such a burden. You had to save me so many times that I'm beginning to think that I'm nothing but trouble to you." Skyla said sadly. 

"You're not a burden; I love you too much for you to be a burden." Yami said.

"You love me?!!" Skyla asked surprised.

"Uh… I mean… well…" Yami stuttered. "You're special to me; yeah, that's it." Yami tried to cover up turning beet red.

"Well, I… love you to… Yami." Skyla said, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks as she looked down at the bed sheets.

The room was soon filled with the teasing of the other slaves and the guards that were in the room. Skyla chose that time to grab the tray of food and eat. Yami looked at her and saw that she ate quickly showing that she obviously was starving. 

"Glad to see you like the food." Yami said with a big grin.

"It's amazing how much you can eat when you're starving." Skyla replied back sarcastically after swallowing a mouthful of food being half way through the meal.

She finished her meal and thanked Yami for it, before thanking Yugi for healing her, and then she asked to walk around the palace with everyone that was in the room and to get Joey and Tristan in on the action. Yami approved since she wanted to walk with everyone and not by herself. The day continued on at a normal pace and everyone was able to go about their usual routines, but Skyla still did have her fear of men that she didn't know. A peasant came into the palace to talk to Yami and Skyla backed into the wall when he looked at her for she knew for a fact, that the man was the one that grabbed her when she was in the throne room by herself. Yami was confused at her actions because she didn't act that scared when he met with all the other peasants that day. His confusion finally annoyed him enough for him to get up and walk over to her to find out what the problem was.

"Skyla, what's the matter?" he whispered in her ear.

"That man is the one that grabbed me and brought be to Seto's chambers, I'm sure of it." She answered.

"What do you mean you're sure of it?" Yami asked.

"He knocked me out with something he stole from the healer's quarters."

"That's why Yugi was unconscious when I went to check on him."

"Yes… that must be it. Anyway, are you going to kill that man or not?" Skyla asked impatiently.

"I want to question him on it first."

"He'll just lie to you; just kill him and get it over with." Skyla said, earning a glare from Yami.

"I'm the pharaoh, and I'll do it my way." He said to her before walking over to question the man.

"'I'm the pharaoh, and I'll do it my way.'" Skyla mocked as she slid down the wall and began to pout.

The next thing Skyla saw was Bakura and Ishtar dragging Keith off to the dungeons while he struggled against them.

            "I will get you for this wench! You can count on it!!" Keith yelled at Skyla.

            "I'd like to see you try!" She retorted.

"Oh, don't worry, you will!" he said with a smirk before he was hauled down the stairs and into the dungeon.

Unfortunately, Keith did manage to get out of the guards' grasp and knocked them out in the process; fortunately, Malik was on duty and he used telekinesis to throw Keith into a wall and knock him out before locking him into a cell of his own. For the next few months, life in the palace continued as usual and Keith had yet to come up with a plan to escape from the dungeon.

NOTE: Sorry it took forever, but I just got over spring break so I was able to work on this, and a couple of other stories.

Seto: You had to make me the bad guy and kill me didn't you?

WB Chan: It was either that or not giving you a part at all.

Ishtar: He's not the only one you made evil!

WB Chan: I fail to see the problem.

Bakura: The problem is, you made me and Ishtar saps!

WB Chan: I still don't see the problem; you're a lot cuter when you're good.

Ishtar: Says you.

WB Chan: Do I have to make you do something stupid to where Yami kills you two off?!!

Bakura & Ishtar: No, No that's quite alright; we can deal.

WB Chan: Good boys, now go fetch your lights.

Bakura & Ishtar: We're not dogs!!

WB Chan: I can fix that problem; make you able to shape-shift.

Bakura & Ishtar: Hell No!!

WB Chan: Fine, but if you don't behave I just might make you able to turn into animals and you won't be the only ones.

Yami: Bakura and Ishtar, you are not going to make the decision for all of us!

Bakura & Ishtar: Okay, okay, we'll stop complaining.

Yami: I love being pharaoh.

WB Chan: That's all fine and dandy but we are moving on to the next chapter now.

Bakura & Ishtar: Yes almighty authoress.


	6. Journey to the Next Town

Chapter 6: Journey to the NextTown and Back

(I am going to turn this into kind of a cross over considering the fact that I plan to put some of the Yu Yu Hakusho characters in the story.)

Yami had to leave and go to the next town in which he brought Skyla, Yugi, Ryou, Bakura, Ishtar, and Malik with him. The next town was where Yami would find some friends of his that would replace some of the council members that had died. They arrived in front of a small but fancy house where Yami knocked and was greeted by a handsome man with red hair.

"Hello Kurama, it's been a long time since we last saw each other." Yami greeted him.

"Yami, it certainly has been long, who's the young lady at your side?" Kurama asked.

"This is Skyla, she's a new servant of mine, the others are Yugi, Bakura, Ryou, Ishtar, and Malik." Yami introduced everyone. "Skyla used to be blind, but Yugi healed her eyes." Yami finished.

"What happened to the high priest?" Kurama asked, letting them in.

"I had to kill him because he kidnapped and beat Skyla to try and hurt me emotionally." Yami explained.

{**Seto:** Sure make it sound like a necessity. **WB Chan:** Shut up Seto; you're supposed to be dead, remember. **Seto:** grumbles}

"So what business brings you here?" Kurama asked.

"I need to recruit some trusted friends to replace my council; a few members had died recently." Yami answered.

"Oh, I'm sure Hiei will be thrilled; you know how he is when it comes to matters that have the chance to get him bored." Kurama stated.

"I don't mind if he gets bored as long as he doesn't set my palace on fire." Yami replied.

 Kurama chuckled before saying,

            "Just be sure to tell him what will happen to him if he does set the palace on fire."

            "Nothing too horrible, just a swim in the ice cold waters of the Antarctic." Yami said chuckling.

            "How would he burn down the palace, is he some sort of pyromaniac?" Skyla asked.

"No Skyla; Hiei is a fire demon so setting the palace ablaze wouldn't be a very difficult task for a man like him." Yami answered, looking down at her.

"Oh, so where's the cold water to douse him with when he heats up; we did bring cold water with us didn't we?" Skyla asked nervously.

"Don't worry Skyla, he won't burn me, he's been a friend of mine for a while now and he wouldn't do something to hurt me." Yami stated.

"Well that's just fine and dandy for you; it's Bakura, Yugi, Ryou, Ishtar, Malik, and me that I'm worried about." Skyla said sarcastically.

Yami chuckled before saying,

"I'm sorry Skyla; I guess I should've said that he won't burn us. Where are the others anyway?" Yami asked.

"There out back training; you know how Hiei and Yusuke are." Kurama answered.

"Oh yeah, work-o'-holics" Yami answered.

"And you're not a work-o'-holic Yami?" Skyla questioned.

"What happened to the shy servant that I had?" Yami asked laughing a bit.

"She's on vacation right now, but if you leave a message and your name she'll get back to you sometime in the next millennium or so." Skyla said (sounding somewhat like an answering machine.)

Kurama laughed and the others snickered while Yami looked at Skyla dumbstruck.

            "What, didn't expect a sarcastic remark from me?" Skyla asked.

"Well, it's just that you were never THAT sarcastic in anything that you said to me." Yami answered after regaining his composure.

"Are you sure?" Skyla asked.

"I'm positive." Yami answered.

"Whatever you say Yami." Skyla said slyly.

Yami turned to Kurama again, who led them out of the house and into the back yard where Yusuke and Hiei were definitely training and it looked to Skyla like they were an even match.

"So Hiei, still haven't been able to defeat Yusuke I see." Yami said, bringing the two sparring men's attention to him.

"Yami, what business brings you here?" Hiei asked none to politely.

"I need you to join my council since I need to replace the council members that died." Yami answered.

"Oh, so you came for replacements." Yusuke said.

"Yes, I guess you could say that." Yami answered.

"Okay then let's go." Yusuke said while heading toward the door to get his things from his room.

"Wait a minute why didn't you tell me this?!" Kewabara said in a panic

"Do you understand the kinds of matters you handle while you're on the council numbskull?" Hiei asked him sarcastically.

"Um, no not really, but I'd still like to join you guys." Kewabara answered.

"Don't worry about him, he can be another guard." Yami said.

"Oh thank you!" Kewabara said enthusiastically before bouncing off to his room to pack his things.

They returned to the palace before night fall to find everyone running around frantically.

            "What's going on?!" Yami demanded.

"Milord, you're back! We just got a report that the Nubian people want to start a war and are heading this way as we speak to try and overthrow you!" One of the guards explained.

"Rally the troops, if they want a war, we'll give them one!" Yami stated as he got his armor and prepared to go into battle. "Sorry I have to cut this short, but I have my kingdom to save." Yami apologized to his guests.

"No problem, we'll help you." Yusuke said as he and his friends prepared to fight. Jin and Touya were looking for some action, as were the others.

"Skyla you stay here where you'll be safe." Yami ordered.

"But…I can help you." Skyla protested.

"You are to stay here and that is final!" Yami nearly yelled, causing her to storm off to his room and slam the door.

"You might wanna fix her wounded ego if we live through this war." Hiei suggested.

"We will; the Nubian people aren't that strong." Yami commented confidently.

"Then let's head out and kick some ass!" Yusuke said enthusiastically.

Skyla was so mad that Yami made her stay in the palace that she snuck out of the palace and into the desert only to get into trouble with the enemy which was lead by Keith as he managed to make a deal with the  Nubians to get him out of the dungeon. As soon as he grabbed her she looked at him and said,

"It's you?! You're behind this war?!"

"Of course I am girl, you didn't expect me not to try and get revenge for being thrown in the dungeon now did you?" He answered as his grip tightened on her arm and she winced. After he thought a while, he got an Idea of what to do with her. "Tie her to the catapult! That's bound to be the first thing that the pharaoh will try to take out!" He ordered the commander.

"You're wrong, he's most likely gonna attempt to take down the leader first!!" Skyla yelled, even as they tied her to the catapult.

"I highly doubt that; he'll wanna save his palace over anything else." Keith said with a smirk as he watched her struggle to free herself.

Meanwhile, Yami was looking for the leader when he saw that Skyla had gotten herself into trouble again as she was tied to a catapult. Instead of seeking the leader, he pulled something Keith didn't expect and summoned his Dark Magician to free her and bring her to him. Once that was done he continued to seek the leader while his mage held tightly onto Skyla. Once Yami found Keith, he got into a fighting stance and fought him with everything he had until he managed to kill him. During the battle though, Keith pulled a few unexpected moves and Yami didn't get out without a few bruises for his efforts. Yami then made his way over to Dark and Skyla to scold her for leaving.

            "I thought I told you not to leave the palace, and to stay in my room!" He yelled.

"You never said that! You just said that I can't fight along side you!" Skyla yelled back, getting a slap across her face for her efforts.

"I expect you to obey my orders without question! Do you understand me?!" He yelled.

"If I'm so much trouble to you why don't you let me rot in the dungeons like all the other filth down there?!" Skyla yelled before cringing, expecting another blow to the face for it.

Yami drew back his hand to smack her again when he saw her cringe away from him. He didn't understand why, but her last comment stung painfully.

            "Maybe because I'm not that heartless." He said quietly, looking away from her.

"You fooled me!" Skyla snapped before finally managing to struggle out of Dark's arms and running back into the palace and into Yami's room. She was really trying not to shed tears, but it was almost impossible.

"Master, you're falling for her aren't you?" Dark asked calmly.

"What gave you that idea?" Yami asked, trying to ignore the stinging in his heart.

"Master, I know you better than you think; I can tell that her words hurt you." Dark explained.

"Well…I guess that maybe…maybe I am falling for her just a little." Yami admitted, though Dark could tell that it was more than just a little as he went back into the shadow realm, since the war was over and Yami was clearly lost in thought.

Hiei brought him out of it though by asking,

"What happened between you two this time?"

"Nothing, she's just a little upset about being left out of the fighting." Yami answered, heading back into his room where he just went to his bed and lie down as he felt that she wouldn't want to talk to him anytime soon; that, and she looked like she was sleeping herself.

"You shouldn't have yelled at me you know." Skyla said quietly.

Yami turned to face her surprised that she was talking to him.

"I'm sorry, I was under a lot of stress and I wanted to get the war done and over with." Yami apologized; he really loved Skyla; and it was for that reason that he didn't care if it was beneath him to apologize to her.

"I understand that Yami, but I just wanted to help." Skyla explained.

"I know, and I should've let you." Yami stated with a small smile. When she smiled back at him, he knew that their little fight was over and forgotten. Then, Yami remembered something, "I'm also sorry that I slapped you." He apologized again.

"I've already forgiven you for that." Skyla said quietly.

End Chapter 6 – I'll bring Yugi, Ryou, and Malik back in the next chapter; if I can get my muse back so that I can get more ideas.


	7. Problems Arise & Love is Tested

Chapter 7: Problems Arise and Love is Tested

_(I'm really, really, really, really, really sorry this took so long, but it's hard to get inspiration when you're taking a summer class and you have studies to concentrate on; not to mention the fact that my muses had taken off on me for the longest time. The important thing is, it's done right? The sound of crickets can be heard but nothing more. Okay…Um, on with the story? Nervous laughter)._

After sleeping all night, Skyla awoke to the awful sound of Yami wheezing. She got up to check on him and found that he was awake, but having much difficulty breathing.

"Yami, what's the matter?! Why is it so hard for you to breathe?!" Skyla asked, a bit panicked.

"Keith's weapons…must've been…poisoned…" Yami stated with difficulty; before gaining enough air to try and speak again. "My lungs…feel like they're…nearly frozen." He commented.

Skyla got an idea, she'd fill the bath with hot enough water to get some steam into the air, but not hot enough to burn him. She then went into the room and removed Yami's shirt before helping him into the bathing chambers to hopefully loosen up the congestion in his lungs a bit. She got him into the water, not caring if his pants got wet at the moment, as long as she could help him to breathe better. After about fifteen minutes, Yami was breathing better, but he still wasn't in very good shape. Skyla got him out of the bath and dried him off before placing him back on the bed and telling Dark to guard him. She then left the room and went to find Yugi to see if he had any ideas on how to help. She'd learned that there was an herb to cure the type of poison that he was inflicted with, but she'd have to travel to the grassy plains of a meadow over in the next town. She nodded and set to work trying to find people to help her and pulled some strings to be allowed out of the palace.

She had been traveling by horse with some of Yami's most trusted friends, including Kurama, Hiei, Yusuke, Touya, and Jin. The rest were mainly guards that she was able to round up. She had been traveling for two days straight before she found the herb that she needed. She plucked it from the ground and immediately headed back to the palace. Meanwhile, Yami's condition steadily worsened. He was barely holding on by the time she got back, two days later. She had Yugi help her with the herbs before administering it to Yami. She had stayed up all night awaiting the results and finally dozed off at about two in the morning. It was about eight in the morning when she was awoken by someone caressing her cheek. Her brows knitted before she opened her eyes slowly to find Yami awake and in good health.

"You made it." She commented groggily.

Yami smiled, "I wouldn't have if it weren't for you." He stated.

"I couldn't just let you die; looking that frail doesn't suit a powerful leader such as yourself." Skyla commented, giggling at the slight blush that touched Yami's cheeks.

He smiled gently before stating, "You should go back to sleep, you look like you need it."

"Gee, thanks." Skyla commented sarcastically as he gave off a slight chuckle and pulled her on the bed next to him. She was a bit surprised, but realized that she was too tired to protest, and was soon sleeping peacefully once again.

Yugi, Ryou, Malik, Ishtar, and Bakura were watching through the cracked door and grinned; but Ishtar and Bakura couldn't help but start snickering a bit before being nudged by Ryou and Malik. They immediately stopped and looked slightly guilty; but that was ruined by the grins that they were trying to hide.

"Ishtar, I better not find out that you tried to play matchmaker with those two tomorrow." Malik warned.

"Awww, why not?" Ishtar complained.

"Because your methods of matchmaking usually lead one of the people that you're trying to get together with another, to end up dead." Malik answered as a matter of factly.

Ishtar started to pout, but grinned when he saw the slight smirk on Malik's face.

"Okay, I promise, no matchmaking for me." He agreed. "But that doesn't mean Bakura won't try." He said with a mischievous grin.

"He most certainly will not; will you Bakura?" Ryou scolded.

"Well…I mean…Um…Could you repeat the question?" Bakura stated with a slight grin.

Ryou smiled and shook his head before turning his attention back to the door, only to have it shut on them, and seeing a smirk on the pharaoh's face before it closed completely.

"Well, I guess the show's over, time to go back to our rooms." Ryou said standing.

Bakura was about to protest, but thought better of it at a quick glare from Ryou.

"Hey wait, it's easy for you four to return to a room, but what about me? I mean, it's not like I've got a partner or anything." Yugi commented.

They looked at eachother quickly before stating, "Well, we could always go to one room and play a few games until they decide to let you back in the room."

"Well…Okay…I just hope they haven't forgotten about me." Yugi stated unsurely, walking off with the other four.

Skyla woke up four hours later to the feeling of Yami running his fingers through her hair.

"Is my hair really so fascinating that you have to play with it?" She asked groggily.

"You have beautiful hair, why shouldn't I play with it?" Yami asked softly.

"I don't believe my hair is beautiful; in fact, I'm no beauty." She said with a bit of a sad tone.

"Skyla, you are beautiful, and you have no reason to believe otherwise." Yami stated confused, he didn't know why she thought herself to be ugly.

Skyla got up from the bed and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Yami asked.

"I'm going to take a walk; please don't follow me."

"But…Skyla…" Yami tried, only to have her walk out the door.

She missed the hurt look on his face at her departure. Yami sat on his bed and began to sulk as he didn't understand why she was so distant all of a sudden.

Skyla walked down the hall and wandered out of the palace; her blonde hair and blue eyes made her a big target to bandits and thieves however, and it wasn't long before she was lured into a dark area and grabbed from behind. They made sure to cover her mouth to prevent anyone from hearing her before whisking her away to their hideout.

As soon as they got to the hideout and had her tied up, she started yelling at them.

"Just what do you think you're doing?! Let me go!!" She yelled.

"Now why would we want to do that to such a rare beauty as yourself?" They asked smirking.

"How many times do I have to say it before anyone believes me?! I'm not beautiful!" She yelled.

The bandits looked to eachother before they grinned evilly and decided to give her a real reason to think of herself as ugly. They made up a dust from herbs and threw it on her, saying a few magic words to curse her with it before she passed out. As she slept, she grew claws, puppy ears, fangs, and a tail. They were a bit disappointed however, when they discovered that she was still quite attractive. They decided that as soon as she woke up, they would put her in a fighting ring to fight for her life. After all, she was starting to bore them as she didn't do much besides insult them.

Yami had long since started to worry; after all, it had been a while since he'd seen Skyla, and night was drawing near. He called out to Kurama, Hiei, Yusuke, Jin, and Touya, and asked them if they had seen her. After receiving no as an answer from all of them, he decided to send out a search party in the morning to find her. Yugi returned to the room soon after, as Malik and Ryou stayed in Bakura and Ishtar's rooms. After seeing Yami pacing back and forth, he knew something was wrong.

"Yami? What's wrong?" He asked.

"Skyla went for a walk this afternoon and she hasn't returned yet." He stated worriedly.

"Don't worry Yami; I'm sure she'll return soon." Yugi stated.

"If she doesn't return tonight, I'm going to send a search party out tomorrow to find her; of course, I plan to go with them." Yami stated.

"Very well Yami, I'm going to go to bed, don't stay up too late. You won't be in any shape to find her if you do." Yugi commented, before changing and going to his pillows to sleep.

Yami looked at Yugi, and though he found it difficult, he went to bed himself. He didn't get the most restful sleep, but he did at least get some rest.

Meanwhile at the bandit's hideout, Skyla woke up early in the morning and the bandits almost immediately showed her a mirror. Skyla screamed at what she saw; and as they had decided to chain her to the wall while she slept, she was able to put her face in her hands as she started to cry. She didn't see the beauty that others would; when she looked in the mirror, she saw an ugly beast. The bandits smirked before throwing her into a fighting ring; not even giving her a chance to recover from her first surprise. While in the ring, they decided to change from her fighting dogs, to her fighting lions. She only fought back though, after she was scratched by one of the beasts. She fought hard, but she realized too late that she was fighting a losing battle. The main mistake made by the bandits however, was that they had her fighting the lions in an open area that had fencing around so they wouldn't attack the spectators. Suddenly, one of the lions managed to graze his claws across her eyes. Skyla cried out in pain and anguish as she tried frantically to clear her eyes.

Yami had decided to go out with his guards immediately in the morning and found the fighting ring just as Skyla got slashed across the eyes. He recognized the scream, but he was surprised to find that the person it belonged to wasn't who he thought. He did however break up the fight by having his guards throw spears at the lions; killing them. He found it unfair to have two lions fight against one hanyou girl. The thing that confused him most though, was that she was wearing the same clothes Skyla had on the day before. He decided to take her back to the palace with him and once there, he had Yugi heal her. Unfortunately, Yugi couldn't heal her eyes and just bandaged them. She was unconscious by the time he found her, so he just set her on his bed after his servants cleaned her up. He then paced back and forth in his room until she woke up. Once she did awaken, she caught the familiar scent that was always around Yami, and immediately tried to make a run for it. After all, who'd want to love a beast like her?

Yami noticed her trying to run, and immediately grabbed her around the waist before she could get to the door.

"Where are you going? I have a few questions for you."

"Let me go Yami!" Skyla said sternly.

"Skyla?!" Yami asked, shocked.

Yami: You're evil, you know that?

WB Chan: I'm not evil, besides, I was wondering when you'd be showing up.

Yami: How could you just leave it at a cliffhanger?!

WB Chan: Simple, I just figured that since I'm on a role, and my muses are back, I may as well take full advantage of it.

Yami: (Grumbles as he walks off).


	8. Change in Appearance Equals More Questio...

Chapter 8: Change in Appearance Equals More Questions

Skyla backed away from the place that she heard his voice and said shakily,

"Sorry, you've got the wrong girl."

"I don't believe that; Skyla, why won't you look at me?" Yami asked with a hurt tone.

"Maybe because my eyes are bandaged." She answered, somewhat coldly.

"Then let me remove them." Yami requested.

"I can remove them myself thank you." Skyla said curtly, removing the bandages slowly.

As soon as she finished removing the bandages, she tried to get away once again, looking toward the ground.

"Wait, Skyla, look at me." Yami said, grabbing her and lifting her chin so that she was looking at him.

Skyla tried pulling away and fought to get away before he found out that she was blind once again. It didn't work however, as she was discovered when he made it so she couldn't turn away. She couldn't see the shock on his face, or the hint of sadness that was in his eyes, but his sudden silence told her all she needed to know before she collapsed to her knees and started crying.

"I'm sorry Yami, I was too weak to stop them, and now I'm a blind freak." She sobbed.

"Shh, Skyla, that's not true. I've loved you for a long while, this doesn't change anything." Yami soothed.

"That's not true?! Yami, look at me! I'm a freak, and to make matters worse, I can't see anymore! How am I supposed to continue living when I'm nothing but a useless cripple?!" Skyla yelled.

Yami was surprised at her outburst, but he still held her close; hoping, and praying to comfort her in some way. Skyla leaned into him and was slowly starting to calm down. Yami comforted her until he realized that she dozed off. Yami smiled sadly and picked her up; putting her back on the bed and waiting for her to wake up once again. This time, she wasn't out for long, and she woke a half an hour later.

"Yami, why don't you go to bed yourself? I mean, your bed is big enough for both of us. That is, unless you want me to go back to my pillows." She stated.

"No, no, that's quite alright, you can stay here, on the bed. I'll just lie down next to you." Yami said gently, smiling when he saw the faint blush that dusted her cheeks.

"I never thought that you'd be willing to be near a freak like me." She said softly.

"You're not a freak Skyla." Yami stated sternly.

"Yes I…" Skyla started, but didn't get to finish as Yami put a finger to her lips.

"Don't finish that sentence; please, Skyla, I don't want to hear you put yourself down; you're better than that." Yami stated, kissing her on the forehead.

Skyla managed to smile a bit before cuddling into his chest and causing him to blush.

"Am I interrupting something?" The sound of Ishtar's voice reached her ears and Yami immediately squashed the blush to his cheeks.

"No…What can I do for you Ishtar?" Yami asked.

"Nothing, I just thought you two looked so cute together." He teased, snickering. He shut the door quickly though, when Yami threw a pillow at him.

Skyla let out a few giggles at what she heard.

"Yami, you really need to loosen up." She commented.

"First things first, we need to talk about how you got kidnapped in the first place." Yami stated sternly.

"I'd rather not talk about it." She stated quietly.

"Come on Skyla, I want to know; how did you get kidnapped?" Yami asked.

"Well…I kinda…wandered out of the palace…on my own." She answered quietly, refusing to look at him.

"YOU WHAT?!" Yami demanded. "What were you thinking Skyla?!!" He asked incredulously.

"I…I just wanted to explore the town. I guess I lost track of where I was…and what I was doing…while I was in a depressed state." She explained quietly, moving away from Yami. She'd already felt the effects of making him angry, and since she couldn't see, it gave him an advantage.

Yami sighed, "Well, you better make sure to tell Rojo to keep an extra close eye on you from now on; we couldn't heal your eyes, the damage is permanent." He stated quietly, barely concealing his anger, before walking out of the room to cool down.

"What?! No! It can't be!" Skyla stated startled, before she collapsed on the bed, and burst into tears.

"Master?" She heard a voice off to her left.

"What is it Rojo?" She asked.

"Is there anything I can do?" He asked.

"Not unless you can turn back the clock to prevent something from happening." She stated sadly.

"Time Wizard can do that." Rojo stated.

"Not from what I've heard; he can only turn back time by one thousand years each time." Skyla commented.

Rojo frowned, his master had such a good heart, and she didn't deserve any of the horrible things that had happened to her. He didn't understand what made the Gods so upset that they wouldn't help her out; just this once.

"Rojo, I want to go take a walk to the gardens, would you mind escorting me there?" She asked.

"Of course master." He stated with a faint smile, although she didn't see it.

They got to the garden, and since Rojo could sense that his master needed some time alone, he walked to a corner of the room so that he could keep an eye on her. 'I hope Master doesn't just mope around from now on; I fear I'd miss her happy expressions, and her spunky attitude if she did.' He thought.

Meanwhile, as Yami was doing his usual business, he remembered that he had yet to ask how it was that she became a hanyou to begin with. He headed back to his room, but when Rojo sensed he was heading back, he told him mentally that she was in the garden. He also stated that it might not be best for him to talk to her at the moment, as she did seem to be feeling down.

Master, I'd suggest you tell her how you feel, and soon; if she gets any worse, she could end up digging her own grave.Dark said telepathically.

/What ever gave you the idea that I cared for her as more than just a friend?! And how is it that she would end up digging her own grave? / Yami demanded.

It's written all over your face milord; and I must remind you that her feelings of worthlessness, may lead to her refusing to eat.Dark explained.

/Is it really that obvious?!/ Yami asked shocked, before commenting about her not eating. /She won't starve herself, if I have to feed her like a mother bird feeds her young!/

I did not need to know that master.Dark commented with a sigh.

Before Yami knew it, he was right outside the door to the gardens and his conversation with Dark ended abruptly. He walked in and knew in the back of his mind that if he didn't come out and tell her his feelings soon, it may be too late. He quietly opened the door, and walked in; he closed the door and walked over to Skyla until he was standing right in front of her.

"Skyla?" He asked, only to frown as she looked up at him with an almost dead look to her blind eyes.

He realized that his confession couldn't wait any longer and before she could do anything, he leaned down and kissed her passionately on the lips. Skyla's eyes went wide with shock before she relaxed into the kiss and let him lay her back on the bench, until he pulled away.

"Skyla, I have a confession to make; I love you, more than life itself." He stated gently, watching as her eyes slowly started to glimmer with unshed tears.

"But Yami…I'm a monster, how could you love me?" She asked as a few tears fell.

Yami brushed them away before answering, "I've loved you for a while, and though your outside appearance has changed, it's still you on the inside."

More tears fell as she started to feel her heart opening up to him "But…" She tried before he kissed her again as if such an action would erase all the negativity from her mind.

"No buts about it Skyla, I love you and that's final." He said, with a slight teasing to his tone.

The dam had finally broken and she was crying freely, before she threw herself into his arms and admitted, "I love you too Yami; I have for a while, but I didn't know how to tell you. And I didn't want to get hurt if you didn't feel the same way."

Yami smiled, kissing her on the forehead before he asked gently, "How did you change on the outside anyway?"

"The bandits who kidnapped me…they threw some dust made from herbs on me…and when I awoke after passing out…they showed me a mirror…and this is what I became." She explained, as she started to regain her composure.

"That reminds me, I have to sentence those bandits that I imprisoned. I may as well sentence them to death after what they did to you." Yami stated, only to have Skyla smile.

The next day, the bandits were sentenced to death; and soon after their deaths were carried out, Yami explained that all hanyous have a night of weakness. Which he soon found out that Skyla's was on the full moon. A month after all the tragedy, Yami proposed to Skyla; and a year later they were wed. Rojo was at the wedding, as were some other monsters that had new masters. Skyla made sure that Yami knew that he'd have to wait till she was ready to have any 'fun;' much to his dismay. In fact, she made him sleep on the floor a couple times for getting too frisky.

Ishtar and Malik got along well, so well, that they became a couple, as did Ryou and Bakura. Yugi, on the other hand, got to work with a new healer that he got along with.

The End

I know it was kinda short; but I still have one more story to finish, and I might make a sequel to this one…not sure yet. I figured that since my muses have returned, I may as well take advantage of it; who knows how long they'll stay this time.


End file.
